This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
As will be appreciated, oil and natural gas have a profound effect on modern economies and societies. In order to meet the demand for such natural resources, numerous companies invest significant amounts of time and money in searching for and extracting oil, natural gas, and other subterranean resources from the earth. Particularly, once a desired resource is discovered below the surface of the earth, drilling and production systems are often employed to access and extract the resource. These systems may be located onshore or offshore depending on the location of a desired resource. Further, such systems generally include a wellhead assembly through which the resource is extracted. These wellhead assemblies may include a wide variety of components and/or conduits, such as various control lines, casings, valves, and the like, that control drilling and/or extraction operations.
As will be appreciated, various control lines or other components of a production or transport system are typically coupled to one another to provide a path for hydraulic control fluid, chemical injections, or the like to be passed through the wellhead assembly. Such control lines are often disposed in various passages through components of the wellhead assembly, such as the tubing spool and/or the tubing hanger. In some instances, the control lines may experience high pressures. For instance, the annular region surrounding the control lines may be subjected to high pressures during testing and operation. Accordingly, seals are generally employed to seal the annular regions around the control lines. In addition, seals may be provided to connect the control lines to other components in the system. For example, the control lines may be routed to an external location where the lines are mated with other components, such as a control block.
Typically, each seal is manually installed at each seal location independent from other seals and seal locations. For example, an assembler may use a wrench to advance a fitting that seats a seal at each of the seal locations. However, in some applications, the space available for sealing and connecting the control lines may be limited and, thus, installing the seals may prove more difficult. Further, as the number of control lines within a system increases, the overall complexity and difficulty of connecting the lines may increase. For example, multiple control lines may reduce the space available for each control line and seal, and thus, increase the overall time and effort to seal the multiple control lines in the system.